Christian ministry Exodus International apologizes to gays, will close

Jun. 21, 2013

Written by

David Crary

Associated Press

The leader of Exodus International, a Christian ministry that worked to help people repress same-sex attraction, has apologized to the gay community for inflicting “years of undue suffering.” He plans to close the organization while launching a new effort to promote reconciliation.

“The church has waged the culture war, and it’s time to put the weapons down,” President Alan Chambers told The Associated Press on Thursday, hours after announcing his decision at Exodus’ annual conference and posting his apology online.

“While there has been so much good at Exodus, there has also been bad,” Chambers said at the conference. “We’ve hurt people.”

Exodus, based in Orlando, Fla., was founded 37 years ago and claimed 260 member ministries around the U.S. and abroad. It offered to help conflicted Christians rid themselves of unwanted homosexual inclinations through counseling and prayer, infuriating gay rights activists in the process.

Exodus had seen its influence wane in recent years as mainstream associations representing psychiatrists and psychologists rejected its approach. However, the idea that gays could be “converted” to heterosexuality through prayer persists among some evangelicals and fundamentalists.

The announcement that Exodus would close was not a total surprise. Last year, Chambers — who is married to a woman but has spoken openly about his own sexual attraction to men — said he was trying to distance his ministry from the idea that gays’ sexual orientation can be permanently changed or “cured.”

“We want to see bridges built, we want peace to be at the forefront of anything we do in the future,” Chambers said Thursday.

Gay rights activists welcomed Chambers’ apology, while reiterating their belief that Exodus had caused great damage.

“This is a welcome first step in honestly addressing the harm the organization and its leaders have caused,” said Sharon Groves, director of the Human Rights Campaign’s religion and faith program. “Now we need them to take the next step of leadership and persuade all other religious-based institutions that they got it wrong.”